Small Clinic Shows What Health Care Costs if Gov’t Isn’t Involved

A price list of medical services provided by Clinica Mi Pueblo showed just how different the industry could be if the government were not involved in health care, and I’m not sure whether to jump for joy or cry.

Clinica Mi Pueblo is a chain of general medical clinics that span Southern California and primarily service the Hispanic community.

Their clinics provide “general medicine services at the most affordable prices possible,” and with the prices shown below, it’s hard to disagree.

When one sees these prices, it’s hard not to scratch your head and ask, “Wait, why are we paying so much, then?”

That’s correct. There’s a place in the world where you can get a nob-subsidized MRI, insurance-free for $350. In 2014, the average cost of an MRI was $2,611, according to Time.

So, what gives?

According to the American Enterprise Institute, “(T)he clinic operates on a cash-only basis, with transparent prices that are listed both on the clinic’s website and on the wall at each clinic.”

“Further, the clinic accepts no insurance, and it will not submit insurance claims on patients’ behalf. If patients have insurance, they can easily take the paperwork the clinic provides and file an insurance claim on their own,” it explained. “Reducing the costly, time-consuming mountain of paperwork associated with insurance, Medicare and Medicaid is one of the main reasons that cash-only medical clinics can keep their costs down and prices so low and affordable.”

Can you imagine how much people would save if they had the chance to participate in routine medical care without getting a third party involved and having to guess at the price of everything they need done? That almost sounds like an open, competitive market.

You want to drain the medical swamp? Offer tax incentives to clinics and professionals who follow this model and encourage the emergence of medical industry as a competitive, transparent field.